Commercial vehicle manufacturer Ashok Leyland and ABB Power Products and Systems India Ltd. have entered into a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to develop electric buses using the latter’s flash charge technology ‘TOSA.’
According to ABB Power Products, TOSA (Trolleybus Optimisation Systeme Alimentation) is the fastest flash-charging connection technology that does the topping (charging) in seconds even as passengers get on and off the buses. Besides, it reduces the environmental pollution of the transit systems without affecting passenger capacity or the journey time, said ABB Power Products and Systems India Ltd. (ABB Power Grids’ business in India) in a statement.
When connected to charging infrastructure, the batteries can be charged with a 600-kilowatt power boost in 15 seconds. An additional few minutes of charge at the final terminal would result in full recharge without interrupting the bus schedule.
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TOSA can prevent 1,000 tons of carbon dioxide emission on a line covering six lakh km per year. It also offers operating cost savings of 30% compared to an equivalent diesel transit system.
ABB Power Grids’ business in India is responsible for planning, design, engineering installation and commissioning of the TOSA charging system under the MoU. Ashok Leyland will have the scope for manufacturing and supplying electrics buses compatible with TOSA technology.
According to the pact, ABB will also provide Ashok Leyland with ABB Ability Enterprise Asset Management software solution for asset optimisation as well as ABB Ability Network Manager Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition systems to monitor and control the power network for charging stations and e-buses.
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On its part, Ashok Leyland will provide vehicle, energy and EV-related technical information using its iAlert Platform. This would further optimise maintenance processes, enable a fast response to fault incidents and better predict maintenance and performance needs. The overall solutions are equipped with remote access and ‘cloud’ capabilities and is scalable to meet future needs, according to the statement.
“We are pushing the boundaries of e-mobility with our flash-charging technology TOSA for buses to contribute to a cleaner, greener, and sustainable future,” said N. Venu, MD, ABB Power Products and Systems India Ltd. “The aim is to provide a zero local emission mass public transportation bus system with high passenger capacity,” he added.